BBC’s Charlie Stayt Grills Chancellor Over Taxpayer-Funded Settlement In Secretary’s ‘Hamas’ Libel Case
BBC host Charlie Stayt left Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt squirming as he interrogated him on whether it was right that taxpayers will pay a £15,000 damages bill after Science Secretary Michelle Donelan settled a defamation case with an academic she falsely accused of supporting Hamas.
Appearing on Thursday’s BBC Breakfast to discuss his final pre-election budget, the Chancellor was taken to task over the issue in the closing minutes of his interview appearance.
Stayt: “Before we finish, and I know our time is limited, I guess you, as Chancellor, you sort of sign off all things that get paid by the government. This payment, this settlement that was paid to an academic after the Science Secretary Michelle Donnellan had falsely accused them of supporting Hamas, a settlement of £15,000 has been paid by the taxpayer. Did you approve that?”
Hunt: “I don’t think I did, because the Chancellor only approves much larger sums of money. But it is normal practice that government lawyers support government ministers in legal cases that are brought against government ministers in the course of their duties. This was a payment that was made without admission of liability, as I understand it. And it was paid, I think, to reduce the cost that would be incurred to the taxpayer if there was a protracted legal case.”
Stayt: “So does that mean… I understand there’s precedent there. You might well also understand that a lot of people are very confused that taxpayers have to pay up when Michelle Donelan makes what appears to be a private comment, not directly linked to her work. She’s the Science Secretary. Do you think it’s right that taxpayers, given what we’ve been talking about today, do you think it’s right?
Hunt: “Well, that would be a judgement for the permanent secretary of Michelle Donelan’s department…”
Stayt: “To be fair, you are the chancellor. Mr Hunt, to be fair, you’re the chancellor. I appreciate there are responsibilities here. I’m asking you as a grown-up chancellor who often handles difficult questions like this what you think.”
Hunt: “Yeah, and I’m telling you that the way the government works is that politicians don’t make decisions as to whether legal fees in these situations should be paid by the taxpayer or paid by an individual. That is made by civil servants, rightly so. In this case, the judgement was that it was appropriate for that payment to be made.”
Donelan accused Heriot Watt University Professor Kate Sang of supporting Hamas in the wake of the October 7 attacks on Israel. The accusation was based on a tweet by Sang, expressing concern over a Guardian article discussing the UK’s response to the Hamas attacks.
The Science Secretary’s accusation led to a libel claim against her, which the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) settled for £15,000. The payment sparked calls from Labour and Liberal Democrats for Donelan’s to apologise and for her to personally reimburse the funds.
